Shared joy is double joy

There's an old Swedish motto that hangs in many a kitchen: "Shared joy is a double joy. Share sorrow is half a sorrow" The secret of survival is not simply enjoying life's joy and enduring its sorrows. It is in sharing both with others.

We gain perspective by having somebody at our side. We gain objectivity. We gain courage in threatening situations. Having others near tempers our dogmatism and softens our intolerance. We gain another opinion. We gain what today, in our technical world, is called "input"

In other words, it is better not to work or live one's life all alone. It's better to have someone alongside us in the battle. For that reason, during my days in the Marines, we were taught that if the command "dig in" were issued, we should dig a hole large enough for two.